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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes.OSB.20230518 MINUTES City of Aspen, Open Space and Trails Board Meeting Held on May 18, 2023 5:00pm at Pearl Pass Room, Aspen City Hall City OST Board Members Present: Julie Hardman, Howie Mallory (arrived late), Adam McCurdy, Ann Mullins, Dan Perl City Staff Members Present: John Spiess, Matt Kuhn, Michael Tunte, Austin Weiss, Micah Davis Adoption of the Agenda: Dan made a motion to approve the agenda; Ann seconded and the vote was unanimous. Public Comments, for topics not on the agenda: None. Approval of the Minutes: Julie made a motion to approve the minutes; Ann seconded and the vote was unanimous. New Business: Board Retreat: Matt described past board retreats and the topics that have been covered. He then invited the board to discuss what topics should be covered in a future board retreat. Ann expressed interest in having a ½ day board retreat. She is interested in discussing the New Castle Creek bridge project as well as acquisitions. Dan seconded the importance of speaking about acquisitions and his interest in exploring accessibility and accessible access opportunities within our trails and open spaces. Julie expressed that the Board’s clear goals and broad vision on the New Castle Creek Bridge will be important. Adam mentioned his concern about the potential for spending too much time talking about hypothetical scenarios for Castle Creek Bridge before there is more specific information to guide this discussion. Adam also expressed his interest in the acquisitions topic, mentioning Open Space’s role in acquisitions beyond City limits and what the Board may be interested in pursuing with a larger and more certain budget. Matt said that staff will work on content later in the summer; the retreat date will be established at the next Board meeting. Capital Project Update: John and Matt provided an overview of 2023 capital projects progress. Maroon Creek Trail construction: Gould Construction has been on the team for the past two months; weekly meetings include City Parks and Engineering, Otak, Gould, and Phil Bond (an owner’s rep). The team has been working through design considerations toward a guaranteed maximum price (due Monday) which will provide the first real glimpse of the price. Utility location work is underway. The project is progressing well; the guaranteed maximum price will prepare us for any potential supplemental budget items in September. Construction would begin in April depending on snow melt. Truscott Underpass: This narrow corridor beneath Hwy. 82 has ice issues in winter; Parks is considering solutions such as widening. Matt added information on a project that is not a Parks capital project but is relevant to this discussion: the design of a trail connection from the Inn at Aspen to Maroon Creek Bridge. Parks is participating as a partner, although the design is currently funded by the EOTC. The Truscott Underpass would dovetail with this effort, and planning is progressing simultaneously with the two projects. Matt mentioned a placeholder in the budget for funding contributions to construction. This trail connection was formerly referred to as Southside Trail and is now called Buttermilk to Truscott. Adam commented on the redundancy of two trails, one on either side of the highway. Matt mentioned that this was removed from long-range planning during the pandemic because it was considered duplicative, but this trail concept provides connections from a destination standpoint for full-time residential housing in the area. A discussion followed to clarify the extent of this trail. Ann mentioned that this connection had been part of initial conversations regarding Buttermilk as a park and ride facility. Austin added that a grade separated crossing is being explored for the Buttermilk crosswalk at Highway 82. Dan asked about the process for trail development and construction. Matt replied that while the EOTC is funding design, they have not yet discussed construction funding; Parks is anticipating contributing to construction funding and would like to see this trail connection built. The public process is currently gathering data on interest. Dan asked about an ADA accessible path; Matt clarified the location of the existing ramp and added that the bus stop has changed since the ramp was built. John described Nordic grooming access on this connection. Dan asked for clarification of seasonal trail uses; John explained seasonal alignments, including sufficient width for Nordic and multi-use trails, and ADA access between the bus stop and Pyramid Drive. Austin added information about design for the sun to control ice in the underpass area. Adam asked why the alignment would not end at the Stage Road underpass. Matt explained that residents of the Pomegranate would have considerable backtracking if there was no in-bound connection to Aspen. Updates to trail surface improvements: Three trails are being addressed: Chatfield Trail, Bugsy Barnard Park Trail, and Villas Trail. This will go out to bid in the next month; there is a chance it may be too late in the season for a response. Ann asked how roots are treated; Matt explained milling and overlaying, and root barriers. Fence replacement: Most of this has been completed at Triangle Park; more work is anticipated at Bugsy Barnard Park. Marolt Open Space Maintenance: The flume project will be completed in June. The flight park was renovated last year; an irrigation system will be installed this year to replace the existing system. Julie asked why this area is irrigated; John explained that paragliders are rolled up in this space and it is preferable to do this on grass. Dan asked if the paragliding community may seek a physical separation for their area; Matt explained that physical barriers are generally avoided, although they have asked for certain trail closures. A pathway was constructed to the Potato Shed; next steps include addressing the historic shed. Cozy Point Ranch: Nick has been working with Patty on renovating a housing unit within the horse boarding facility at Cozy Point Ranch. Asphalt overlay at Cozy Point Ranch will cover 2,000 linear feet of the road; this is currently out to bid. Adam asked whether the road is Parks’ responsibility. John said that this part of the road is on Parks property; Parks granted an easement to Brush Creek Metro District to use the road to access their development. An RFP is nearly complete for Cozy Point Master Planning to contract a designer/planner who will help Parks execute the overall vision. Iselin Pickleball Courts: A consultant is currently under contract for Iselin pickle ball courts; an 80% permit drawing is due next month. Permitting and bid documents will happen in 2023; site construction will happen in 2024. Herron Park restroom: Final design work for a pre-fab restroom is underway. Dolensik Gardens: Mike provided a sketch of the park space and described remaining work. Grand opening will be September 14th. Cozy Point Ranch Grading and Drainage: Mike explained the steps and status of each facet of this project. Parks crews will complete work soon, and contractors are bidding for phase two work. Parks Headquarters: Per schematic design and feasibility processes, current work space will be converted to shop space, and office space will be created in current work bay space. Parks is keeping this longer-term, campus-wide planning project in the long-range plan, which will consider access routes from Cemetery Lane, land use application, housing, etc. The next phase of the architectural contract is going to City Council next week; if they approve it, Parks will proceed on June 1st to move through remaining design work. An approach of hiring a construction manager as a general contractor approach will be used so a contractor can be locked in early, as has been done successfully for other projects. Modular trailers will house offices for about 12 months during construction. Matt added that the spring supplemental included two new positions. Both were approved and will be added late summer: a landscape architect and a project manager for the business services team to help with Cozy Point Ranch projects. Ann asked who the architect is; it is Otak. Galena Plaza: Mike provided an update on the design process for Galena Plaza, which is slated for 2027. Mall furniture: New chairs, tables, and lounge chairs will be installed on the mall. Wildlife study of Deer Hill: Staff have received a revised proposal and this study will most likely go under contract this summer. Roundabout Planting: An irrigation team contracted through CDOT will begin work on June 1st. Plant material will arrive around June 6th and a contractor will do the final install work. Maroon Creek Trail: Micah mentioned that Brian ordered speed limit signage; the trails team will identify critical locations to place the signage. A mobile speed radar unit will be deployed to post speeds of users such as cyclists. This will serve as a living lab for trial periods on trails where new speed limit signs are posted. Matt said the sensor will be advisory for users and will record speed data trends; it will be moved around to various sites. AABC to Intercept Lot Trail Project: This project is entering a new phase with Pitkin County taking the lead on an outreach campaign in June through July. Comments may be submitted online at pitkinostprojects.com. where there is a community engagement and analysis page. There will be other engagement opportunities across the summer; these will allow the public to learn about and comment on this project. This data will produce community sentiment results as well as an analysis and data study. Micah mentioned that Pitkin County will replace stringers on Stein Bridge starting Monday. Parks trail staff will close Burlingame Trail on Thursday to do rock work due to erosion. Old Business: None. Board Comments: Julie: Is the new senior director of events at Aspen Chamber of Commerce. Howie: Asked about the washed out trail below the Meadows along the Roaring Fork River. Micah said that new potential connections were flagged last summer and it is hoped to work on this during this summer. Howie also asked when sharrows will be painted on bike-pedways. Matt said that trail striping will occur during the last week of May, including sharrows. Howie asked for an update on Galena Plaza; Mike offered to update him after the meeting. Micah added that bollards for the Music School Trail will be installed after striping in early June. Austin asked Micah about the split rail fencing along that trail; Micah said this is being addressed. Ann: None. Adam: Asked about the rehabilitation of the illegal road cut on Sky Mountain Park. Matt will provide an update on this at the next meeting. Dan: Mentioned two stop signs on Hallam Street at 5th and 3rd that seem inconsistent with the bike-pedway, and asked staff to discuss these next time they speak with Engineering. Next Meeting Date(s): Regular meeting June 15, 2022. Adjourned: Howie made a motion to adjourn; Dan seconded and the vote was unanimous.